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Dale Earnhardt Jr. believes Corey Day is a championship contender in 2026.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. weighed in on Corey Day’s recent success in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. Last Saturday at Talladega, Day scored his first career win in his 21st start, piloting the No. 17 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. 

The early portion of the 2026 campaign was a struggle for the 20-year-old. Day has been involved in a number of on-track incidents that sparked controversy about his placement in the series. 

One of the incidents, among others, was at Circuit of The Americas last March, when he made contact with JR Motorsports driver Carson Kvapil that sent the latter spinning.

Despite some early-season struggles, Earnhardt Jr. has noticed Day’s development in recent weeks. On a recent episode of “Dale Jr. Download,” the former Cup Series star made a prediction on Day’s progress as the season continues.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. said Corey Day is a championship contender

Earnhardt Jr., owner JR Motorsports in the NOAPS, congratulated Day on his Talladega triumph. 

The former driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet acknowledged that Day has had a negative spotlight on him at times in 2026. However, the 51-year-old said the youngster is starting to string together quality races. 

“He’s been in the spotlight a little bit this year for some of the things happening on the racetrack, but he’s figured it out. This kid’s starting to put together races,” Earnhardt Jr. said.

Earnhardt Jr. made it clear that this will not simply be a year of development for Day, but one where he could win a championship. On the heels of his first career victory, Earnhardt Jr. called Day a championship contender.

“Corey Day is a championship contender. I’m gonna say it. Corey Day is figuring it out and he is going to be a handful later in this season for all these guys that are trying to go win a championship. He’s going to be in the conversation, for sure,” Earnhardt Jr. said.

If Day wants to capture the 2026 NOAPS title, chances are he will have to go through one of Earnhardt Jr.’s drivers.

After 11 races, Justin Allgaier holds the points lead by 105 points over Sheldon Creed. The driver of the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet has three wins, eight top fives, and nine top 10s in 2026.

Allgaier is a previous NOAPS champion as he captured the title in 2024 for JR Motorsports. 

A look at Corey Day’s recent momentum 

The 2026 season did not pan out how Day would have hoped as he finished 27th in the season-opener at Daytona. 

Since then, the HMS prospect has finished no worse than 12th with four top fives and nine top 10s. After 11 races, Day sits fourth in the points standings, 145 behind leader Allgaier.

One of Day’s brightest performances was at Rockingham Speedway on April 3. Day started on the pole, won both stages, and led a race-high 118 of 250 laps. However, pit road troubles shuffled him back to a 10th-place result.

That first win came soon after, however, as Day led at the white flag in last Saturday’s Ag-Pro 300. When the caution flew on the final lap, Day was scored the winner for the first time in his young career.